Pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and parents thereof

ABSTRACT

The invention provides seed and plants of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and the parent lines thereof. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and the parent lines thereof, and to methods for producing a pepper plant produced by crossing such plants with themselves or with another pepper plant, such as a plant of another genotype. The invention further relates to seeds and plants produced by such crossing. The invention further relates to parts of such plants, including the fruit and gametes of such plants.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Appl. Ser. No.62/556,893, filed Sep. 11, 2017, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of plant breeding and, morespecifically, to the development of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and theinbred pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The goal of vegetable breeding is to combine various desirable traits ina single variety/hybrid. Such desirable traits may include any traitdeemed beneficial by a grower and/or consumer, including greater yield,resistance to insects and pathogens, tolerance to environmental stress,and nutritional value.

Breeding techniques take advantage of a plant's method of pollination.There are two general methods of pollination: a plant self-pollinates ifpollen from one flower is transferred to the same or another flower ofthe same plant or plant variety. A plant cross-pollinates if pollencomes to it from a flower of a different plant variety.

Plants that have been self-pollinated and selected for type over manygenerations become homozygous at almost all gene loci and produce auniform population of true breeding progeny, a homozygous plant. A crossbetween two such homozygous plants of different genotypes produces auniform population of hybrid plants that are heterozygous for many geneloci. Conversely, a cross of two plants each heterozygous at a number ofloci produces a population of hybrid plants that differ genetically andare not uniform. The resulting non-uniformity makes performanceunpredictable.

The development of uniform varieties requires the development ofhomozygous inbred plants, the crossing of these inbred plants, and theevaluation of the crosses. Pedigree breeding and recurrent selection areexamples of breeding methods that have been used to develop inbredplants from breeding populations. Those breeding methods combine thegenetic backgrounds from two or more plants or various other broad-basedsources into breeding pools from which new lines and hybrids derivedtherefrom are developed by selfing and selection of desired phenotypes.The new lines and hybrids are evaluated to determine which of those havecommercial potential.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the present invention provides a pepper plant of thehybrid designated SVHH2680, the pepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper lineHHA-FD-1209. Also provided are pepper plants having all thephysiological and morphological characteristics of such a plant. Partsof these pepper plants are also provided, for example, including pollen,an ovule, scion, a rootstock, a fruit, and a cell of the plant.

In another aspect of the invention, a plant of pepper hybrid SVHH2680and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 comprising an addedheritable trait is provided. The heritable trait may comprise a geneticlocus that is, for example, a dominant or recessive allele. In oneembodiment of the invention, a plant of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and/orpepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 is defined as comprising asingle locus conversion. In specific embodiments of the invention, anadded genetic locus confers one or more traits such as, for example,herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, disease resistance, and modifiedcarbohydrate metabolism. In further embodiments, the trait may beconferred by a naturally occurring gene introduced into the genome of aline by backcrossing, a natural or induced mutation, or a transgeneintroduced through genetic transformation techniques into the plant or aprogenitor of any previous generation thereof. When introduced throughtransformation, a genetic locus may comprise one or more genesintegrated at a single chromosomal location.

The invention also concerns the seed of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and/orpepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209. The pepper seed of theinvention may be provided as an essentially homogeneous population ofpepper seed of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209. Essentially homogeneous populations of seed aregenerally free from substantial numbers of other seed. Therefore, insome embodiments, seed of hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper linesHHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 may be defined as forming at least about97% of the total seed, including at least about 98%, 99% or more of theseed. The seed population may be separately grown to provide anessentially homogeneous population of pepper plants designated SVHH2680and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a tissue culture of regenerablecells of a pepper plant of hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper linesHHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 is provided. The tissue culture willpreferably be capable of regenerating pepper plants capable ofexpressing all of the physiological and morphological characteristics ofthe starting plant, and of regenerating plants having substantially thesame genotype as the starting plant. Examples of some of thephysiological and morphological characteristics of the hybrid SVHH2680and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 include those traitsset forth in the tables herein. The regenerable cells in such tissuecultures may be derived, for example, from embryos, meristems,cotyledons, pollen, leaves, anthers, roots, root tips, pistils, flowers,seed and stalks. Still further, the present invention provides pepperplants regenerated from a tissue culture of the invention, the plantshaving all the physiological and morphological characteristics of hybridSVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, processes are provided forproducing pepper seeds, plants and fruit, which processes generallycomprise crossing a first parent pepper plant with a second parentpepper plant, wherein at least one of the first or second parent pepperplants is a plant of pepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper lineHHA-FD-1209. These processes may be further exemplified as processes forpreparing hybrid pepper seed or plants, wherein a first pepper plant iscrossed with a second pepper plant of a different, distinct genotype toprovide a hybrid that has, as one of its parents, a plant of pepper lineHHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209. In these processes, crossingwill result in the production of seed. The seed production occursregardless of whether the seed is collected or not.

In one embodiment of the invention, the first step in “crossing”comprises planting seeds of a first and second parent pepper plant,often in proximity so that pollination will occur for example, mediatedby insect vectors. Alternatively, pollen can be transferred manually.Where the plant is self-pollinated, pollination may occur without theneed for direct human intervention other than plant cultivation.

A second step may comprise cultivating or growing the seeds of first andsecond parent pepper plants into plants that bear flowers. A third stepmay comprise preventing self-pollination of the plants, such as byemasculating the flowers (i.e., killing or removing the pollen).

A fourth step for a hybrid cross may comprise cross-pollination betweenthe first and second parent pepper plants. Yet another step comprisesharvesting the seeds from at least one of the parent pepper plants. Theharvested seed can be grown to produce a pepper plant or hybrid pepperplant.

The present invention also provides the pepper seeds and plants producedby a process that comprises crossing a first parent pepper plant with asecond parent pepper plant, wherein at least one of the first or secondparent pepper plants is a plant of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepperlines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209. In one embodiment of the invention,pepper seed and plants produced by the process are first generation (F₁)hybrid pepper seed and plants produced by crossing a plant in accordancewith the invention with another, distinct plant. The present inventionfurther contemplates plant parts of such an F₁ hybrid pepper plant, andmethods of use thereof. Therefore, certain exemplary embodiments of theinvention provide an F₁ hybrid pepper plant and seed thereof.

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides a method ofproducing a plant derived from hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper linesHHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209, the method comprising the steps of: (a)preparing a progeny plant derived from hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepperlines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209, wherein said preparing comprisescrossing a plant of the hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209 with a second plant; and (b) crossing the progeny plantwith itself or a second plant to produce a seed of a progeny plant of asubsequent generation. In further embodiments, the method mayadditionally comprise: (c) growing a progeny plant of a subsequentgeneration from said seed of a progeny plant of a subsequent generationand crossing the progeny plant of a subsequent generation with itself ora second plant; and repeating the steps for an additional 3-10generations to produce a plant derived from hybrid SVHH2680 and/orpepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209. The plant derived from hybridSVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 may be aninbred line, and the aforementioned repeated crossing steps may bedefined as comprising sufficient inbreeding to produce the inbred line.In the method, it may be desirable to select particular plants resultingfrom step (c) for continued crossing according to steps (b) and (c). Byselecting plants having one or more desirable traits, a plant derivedfrom hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 isobtained which possesses some of the desirable traits of the line/hybridas well as potentially other selected traits.

In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a method ofproducing food or feed comprising: (a) obtaining a plant of pepperhybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209,wherein the plant has been cultivated to maturity, and (b) collecting atleast one pepper from the plant.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, the genetic complement ofpepper hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209is provided. The phrase “genetic complement” is used to refer to theaggregate of nucleotide sequences, the expression of which sequencesdefines the phenotype of, in the present case, a pepper plant, or a cellor tissue of that plant. A genetic complement thus represents thegenetic makeup of a cell, tissue or plant, and a hybrid geneticcomplement represents the genetic make-up of a hybrid cell, tissue orplant. The invention thus provides pepper plant cells that have agenetic complement in accordance with the pepper plant cells disclosedherein, and seeds and plants containing such cells.

Plant genetic complements may be assessed by genetic marker profiles,and by the expression of phenotypic traits that are characteristic ofthe expression of the genetic complement, e.g., isozyme typing profiles.It is understood that hybrid SVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209 could be identified by any of the many well-knowntechniques such as, for example, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides hybridgenetic complements, as represented by pepper plant cells, tissues,plants, and seeds, formed by the combination of a haploid geneticcomplement of a pepper plant of the invention with a haploid geneticcomplement of a second pepper plant, preferably, another, distinctpepper plant. In another aspect, the present invention provides a pepperplant regenerated from a tissue culture that comprises a hybrid geneticcomplement of this invention.

Any embodiment discussed herein with respect to one aspect of theinvention applies to other aspects of the invention as well, unlessspecifically noted.

The term “about” is used to indicate that a value includes the standarddeviation of the mean for the device or method being employed todetermine the value. The use of the term “or” in the claims is used tomean “and/or” unless explicitly indicated to refer to alternatives onlyor the alternatives are mutually exclusive. When used in conjunctionwith the word “comprising” or other open language in the claims, thewords “a” and “an” denote “one or more,” unless specifically notedotherwise. The terms “comprise,” “have” and “include” are open-endedlinking verbs. Any forms or tenses of one or more of these verbs, suchas “comprises,” “comprising,” “has,” “having,” “includes” and“including,” are also open-ended. For example, any method that“comprises,” “has” or “includes” one or more steps is not limited topossessing only those one or more steps and also covers other unlistedsteps. Similarly, any plant that “comprises,” “has” or “includes” one ormore traits is not limited to possessing only those one or more traitsand covers other unlisted traits.

Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description. It should beunderstood, however, that the detailed description and any specificexamples provided, while indicating specific embodiments of theinvention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changesand modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from this detaileddescription.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides methods and compositions relating to plants,seeds and derivatives of pepper hybrid SVHH2680, pepper lineHHAFD14-1338, and pepper line HHA-FD-1209.

Pepper hybrid SVHH2680, also known as 14-FD-HAB-0001, is a habanerovariety intended for the fresh and processing markets in the U.S. andMexico (dual purpose). Hybrid SVHH2680 produces fruits that are lightgreen when immature and red when mature; average 8 cm long by 3.5 cmwide at the shoulder; have a wrinkled, blunt shape; and have anexcellent eating quality. Hybrid SVHH2680 comprises tolerance toXanthomonas campestris pv. capsici. Pungency values in non-stressfulenvironments are 0 Scoville Heat Units (SHU) on a fresh basis (sweet),while under stress a faint pungency (10-20 SHU) can be detected.

A. Origin and Breeding History of Pepper Hybrid SVHH2680

The parents of hybrid SVHH2680 are HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209. Theparent lines are uniform and stable, as is a hybrid produced therefrom.A small percentage of variants can occur within commercially acceptablelimits for almost any characteristic during the course of repeatedmultiplication. However no variants are expected.

B. Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of Pepper HybridSVHH2680, Pepper Line HHAFD14-1338, and Pepper Line HHA-FD-1209

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a plant having the physiological and morphologicalcharacteristics of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and the parent lines thereof.A description of the physiological and morphological characteristics ofsuch plants is presented in Tables 1-3.

TABLE 1 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of Pepper HybridSVHH2680 CHARACTERISTIC SVHH2680 Habanero 1. Species C. annuum C. annuum2. Maturity (in region of best adaptability) days from transplantinguntil mature 68 67 green stage days from transplanting until mature 88114 red or yellow stage days from direct seeding until mature 116 115green stage days from direct seeding until mature 136 162 red or yellowstage beginning of flowering (first flower on early late secondflowering node) time of maturity medium late 3. Plant habit spreadingcompact attitude semi-upright/ semi-upright/ semi-erect semi-erectheight (cm) 57.03 48.13 width (cm) 69.70 53.47 length of stem fromcotyledon to first 11.17 19.27 flower (cm) length of the third internode(from soil 41.00 79.67 surface) (mm) length of stem short shortshortened internode (in upper part) absent absent length of internode(on primary side medium long shoots) (for varieties without shortenedinternodes only) stem, hairiness of nodes medium medium height tallmedium basal branches many (4+) none branch flexibility willowy willowystem strength (breakage resistance) strong strong 4. Leaf length ofblade medium medium width of blade broad medium width (mm) 75.53 61.47length (mm) 126.79 113.86 petiole length (mm) 36.93 31.0 color darkgreen dark green color (RHS Color Chart Value) N137C 137A intensity ofgreen color dark dark mature leaf shape broad elliptic ovate leaf andstem pubescence moderate moderate undulation of margin strong strongblistering strong very strong profile in cross section moderatelyconcave moderately concave glossiness strong strong 5. Flower peduncleattitude semi-drooping semi-drooping flowers per leaf axil 2.07 3.07calyx lobes 6.27 5.87 petals 6 6.13 flower diameter (mm) 15.33 18.4corolla color white white corolla throat markings yellow yellow anthercolor purple purple style length exceeds stamen exceeds stamenself-incompatibility present present 6. Fruit group Habanero Habanero(Scotch Bonnet) (Scotch Bonnet) color (before maturity) green greenintensity of color (before maturity) light light immature fruit colorlight green light green immature fruit color (RHS Color Chart 144A 144AValue) attitude/position drooping/pendent drooping/pendent length mediummedium diameter medium medium ratio length/diameter small small calyxdiameter (mm) 12.39 12.13 fruit length (mm) 62.76 46.4 fruit diameter atcalyx attachment 24.29 26.23 (mm) fruit diameter at mid-point (mm) 26.8528.97 flesh thickness at mid-point (mm) 1.09 1.87 average number offruits per plant 72.2 15.33 average fruit weight (g) 11.93 9.33 fruitshape (longitudinal section) trapezoidal cordate/heart shaped fruitshape (cross section, at level of angular/triangular quadrangularplacenta) sinuation of pericarp at basal part strong strong sinuation ofpericarp excluding basal strong strong part texture of surface stronglywrinkled strongly wrinkled surface smoothness smooth rough color (atmaturity) red orange intensity of color (at maturity) dark medium maturefruit color red orange mature fruit color (RHS Color Chart 144A N25AValue) glossiness very strong very strong stalk cavity absent absentpedicel length (mm) 45.73 29.27 pedicel thickness (mm) 2.30 3.35 pedicelshape curved curved pedicel cavity absent absent stalk length very longlong stalk thickness very thin very thin base shape rounded rounded apexshape blunt pointed shape of apex moderately depressed very acute shapeconical (Pimento) conical (Pimento) set scattered scattered depth ofinterloculary grooves very deep deep number of locules predominantlyfour predominantly four and more and more % fruits with one locule 0% 0%% fruits with two locules 0% 0% % fruits with three locules 33.30%   26.70%    % fruits with four locules 66.70%    73.30%    % fruits withfive or more locules 0% 0% average number of locules 3.67 3.73 thicknessof flesh very thin very thin calyx aspect non-enveloping/ envelopingsaucer-shaped (cup-shaped) pungency hot hot capsaicin in placentapresent present flavor strong pepper flavor strong pepper flavorglossiness shiny shiny 7. Seed cavity length (mm) 54.91 36.87 cavitydiameter (mm) 22.18 22.08 placenta length (mm) 38.32 32.69 number ofseeds per fruit 56.93 22.4 grams per 1000 seeds 3.32 4.2 color yellowyellow 8. Anthocyanin Coloration hypocotyl strong strong stem strongweak nodes strong weak intensity of coloration strong weak leaf moderatemoderate pedicel strong absent calyx strong absent anther presentpresent fruit absent absentThese are typical values. Values may vary due to environment. Othervalues that are substantially equivalent are within the scope of theinvention.

TABLE 2 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of Pepper LineHHAFD14-1338 CHARACTERISTIC HHAFD14-1338 FPG 1376-01 1. Species C.annuum C. annuum 2. Maturity (in region of best adaptability) days fromtransplanting until mature 91 76 green stage days from transplantinguntil mature 114 103 red or yellow stage days from direct seeding untilmature 130 115 green stage days from direct seeding until mature 153 142red or yellow stage beginning of flowering (first flower on mediummedium second flowering node) time of maturity medium medium 3. Planthabit spreading spreading attitude semi-upright/ upright/erectsemi-erect height (cm) 63.3 83.0 width (cm) 93 90.6 length of stem fromcotyledon to first 16.4 16.7 flower (cm) length of the third internode(from soil 99 69.3 surface) (mm) length of stem long long shortenedinternode (in upper part) present present number of internodes betweenthe first one to three one to three flower and the shortened internodes(for varieties with shortened internodes only) stem, hairiness of nodesweak strong height medium tall basal branches many (4+) none branchflexibility willowy willowy stem strength (breakage resistance) strongintermediate 4. Leaf length of blade medium long width of blade broadmedium width (mm) 58.5 76.1 length (mm) 99 128.7 petiole length (mm)25.3 37.2 color medium green medium green color (RHS Color Chart Value)137A 138A intensity of green color medium medium mature leaf shape broadelliptic ovate leaf and stem pubescence moderate heavy undulation ofmargin strong medium blistering very strong strong profile in crosssection moderately concave moderately concave glossiness strong medium5. Flower peduncle attitude semi-drooping semi-drooping flowers per leafaxil 2.1 2.4 calyx lobes 6.1 7 petals 5.8 5.7 diameter (mm) 19.7 15.6corolla color white white corolla throat markings yellow yellow anthercolor purple purple style length exceeds stamen exceeds stamenself-incompatibility absent absent 6. Fruit group Habanero Habanero(Scotch Bonnet) (Scotch Bonnet) color (before maturity) green greenintensity of color (before maturity) dark medium immature fruit colordark green medium green immature fruit color (RHS Color Chart 146A 143AValue) attitude/position drooping/pendent drooping/pendent length shortshort diameter medium medium ratio length/diameter medium medium calyxdiameter (mm) 12.6 13.8 fruit length (mm) 65.8 71.6 fruit diameter atcalyx attachment 25.8 27.9 (mm) fruit diameter at mid-point (mm) 34.930.2 flesh thickness at mid-point (mm) 3.4 2.3 average number of fruitsper plant 144.7 118.7 % large fruits (weight range: (weight range: 10.4to 19.8 g) 8.7 to 9.2 g) 13.3% 26.7% % medium fruits (weight range:(weight range: 8.4 to 9.5 g) 7.4 to 8.5 g) 26.7% 53.3% % small fruits(weight range: (weight range: 7 to 8.2 g) 5.9 to 6.3 g)   60%   20%average fruit weight (g) 9.0 7.7 fruit shape (longitudinal section)moderately triangular moderately triangular fruit shape (cross section,at level of circular angular/triangular placenta) sinuation of pericarpat basal part medium weak sinuation of pericarp excluding basal mediummedium part texture of surface smooth or very smooth or very slightlywrinkled slightly wrinkled surface smoothness smooth smooth color (atmaturity) red red intensity of color (at maturity) dark dark maturefruit color red red mature fruit color (RHS Color Chart 45A 44A Value)glossiness very strong strong stalk cavity absent absent pedicel length(mm) 4.4 4.6 pedicel thickness (mm) 4.5 3.8 pedicel shape curved curvedpedicel cavity absent absent stalk length long long stalk thickness thinthin base shape rounded rounded apex shape pointed pointed shape of apexvery acute moderately acute shape conical (Pimento) conical (Pimento)set scattered scattered depth of interloculary grooves medium deep %fruits with one locule    0%   0% % fruits with two locules    0% 6.70%% fruits with three locules   20%   40% % fruits with four locules26.70% 46.70%  % fruits with five or more locules 53.30% 6.60% averagenumber of locules 4.3 3.5 thickness of flesh thin very thin calyx aspectenveloping enveloping (cup-shaped) (cup-shaped) pungency hot hotcapsaicin in placenta present present capsaicin per gram dry fruit (mg)0 66 value for Scoville Units (dry fruit) 0 0.004 (SHU) flavor strongpepper flavor strong pepper flavor glossiness shiny shiny 7. Seed cavitylength (mm) 52.6 62.3 cavity diameter (mm) 26.9 25.9 placenta length(mm) 36.2 44.9 number of seeds per fruit 33.5 72.5 grams per 1000 seeds5.0 4.0 color yellow yellow 8. Anthocyanin Coloration hypocotyl strongstrong stem strong strong nodes strong strong intensity of colorationvery strong strong leaf moderate strong pedicel moderate weak calyxabsent weak anther present present fruit absent absentThese are typical values. Values may vary due to environment. Othervalues that are substantially equivalent are within the scope of theinvention.

TABLE 3 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of Pepper LineHHA-FD-1209 CHARACTERISTIC HHA-FD-1209 FPG 1376-01 1. Species C. annuumC. annuum 2. Maturity (in region of best adaptability) days fromtransplanting until mature 92 76 green stage days from transplantinguntil mature red 123 103 or yellow stage days from direct seeding untilmature 131 115 green stage days from direct seeding until mature 162 142red or yellow stage beginning of flowering (first flower on late mediumsecond flowering node) time of maturity late medium 3. Plant habitcompact spreading attitude upright/erect upright/erect height (cm) 77.583.0 width (cm) 72.6 90.6 length of stem from cotyledon to first 8.116.7 flower (cm) length of the third internode (from soil 36.0 69.3surface) (mm) length of stem medium long shortened internode (in upperpart) present present number of internodes between the first one tothree one to three flower and the shortened internodes (for varietieswith shortened internodes only) stem, hairiness of nodes medium strongheight tall tall basal branches none none branch flexibility willowywillowy stem strength (breakage resistance) strong intermediate 4. Leaflength of blade medium long width of blade medium medium width (mm) 7176.1 length (mm) 117.5 128.7 petiole length (mm) 47.4 37.2 color mediumgreen medium green color (RHS Color Chart Value) 138A 138A intensity ofgreen color medium medium mature leaf shape ovate ovate leaf and stempubescence heavy heavy undulation of margin medium medium blisteringstrong strong profile in cross section flat moderately concaveglossiness very strong medium 5. Flower peduncle attitude semi-droopingsemi-drooping flowers per leaf axil 2.8 2.4 calyx lobes 6.5 7 petals 6.55.7 diameter (mm) 14.6 15.6 corolla color white white corolla throatmarkings yellow yellow anther color purple purple style length exceedsstamen exceeds stamen self-incompatibility absent absent 6. Fruit groupHabanero Habanero (Scotch Bonnet) (Scotch Bonnet) color (beforematurity) green green intensity of color (before maturity) medium mediumimmature fruit color medium green medium green immature fruit color (RHSColor Chart 143A 143A Value) attitude/position drooping/pendentdrooping/pendent length very short short diameter narrow narrow ratiolength/diameter small medium calyx diameter (mm) 8.5 13.8 fruit length(mm) 48 71.6 fruit diameter at calyx attachment (mm) 32.3 27.9 fruitdiameter at mid-point (mm) 26.6 30.2 flesh thickness at mid-point (mm)0.7 2.3 average number of fruits per plant 43.3 118.7 % large fruits(weight range: (weight range: 9.9 to 11.2 g) 8.7 to 9.2 g) 13.4% 26.7% %medium fruits (weight range: (weight range: 8.4 to 9.4 g) 7.4 to 8.5 g)33.3% 53.3% % small fruits (weight range: (weight range: 6.8 to 8.3 g)5.9 to 6.3 g) 53.3%   20% average fruit weight (g) 8.5 7.7 fruit shape(longitudinal section) trapezoidal moderately triangular fruit shape(cross section, at level of quadrangular angular/triangular placenta)sinuation of pericarp at basal part strong weak sinuation of pericarpexcluding basal strong medium part texture of surface slightly wrinkledsmooth or very slightly wrinkled surface smoothness smooth smooth color(at maturity) yellow red intensity of color (at maturity) dark darkmature fruit color orange-yellow red mature fruit color (RHS Color Chart21A 44A Value) glossiness very strong strong stalk cavity absent absentpedicel length (mm) 39.7 4.6 pedicel thickness (mm) 2.4 3.8 pedicelshape curved curved pedicel cavity absent absent stalk length very longvery long stalk thickness very thin very thin base shape rounded roundedapex shape pointed pointed shape of apex moderately depressed moderatelyacute shape conical (Pimento) conical (Pimento) set scattered scattereddepth of interloculary grooves deep deep % fruits with one locule 0%  0% % fruits with two locules 0% 6.70% % fruits with three locules53.30%      40% % fruits with four locules 46.70%    46.70%  % fruitswith five or more locules 0% 6.60% average number of locules 3.5 3.5thickness of flesh very thin very thin calyx aspect envelopingenveloping (cup-shaped) (cup-shaped) pungency hot hot capsaicin inplacenta present present capsaicin per gram dry fruit (mg) 0.034 66value for Scoville Units (dry fruit) 549 0.004 (SHU) flavor strongpepper flavor strong pepper flavor glossiness shiny shiny 7. Seed cavitylength (mm) 43.2 62.3 cavity diameter (mm) 23.5 25.9 placenta length(mm) 25.7 44.9 number of seeds per fruit 52.2 72.5 grams per 1000 seeds6.0 4.0 color yellow yellow 8. Anthocyanin Coloration hypocotyl strongstrong stem moderate strong nodes strong strong intensity of colorationvery strong strong leaf strong strong pedicel weak weak calyx weak weakanther present present fruit absent absentThese are typical values. Values may vary due to environment. Othervalues that are substantially equivalent are within the scope of theinvention.

C. Breeding Pepper Plants

One aspect of the current invention concerns methods for producing seedof pepper hybrid SVHH2680 involving crossing pepper lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209. Alternatively, in other embodiments of the invention,hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, or line HHA-FD-1209 may be crossedwith itself or with any second plant. Such methods can be used forpropagation of hybrid SVHH2680 and/or the pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 andHHA-FD-1209, or can be used to produce plants that are derived fromhybrid SVHH2680 and/or the pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209.Plants derived from hybrid SVHH2680 and/or the pepper lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209 may be used, in certain embodiments, for the developmentof new pepper varieties.

The development of new varieties using one or more starting varieties iswell known in the art. In accordance with the invention, novel varietiesmay be created by crossing hybrid SVHH2680 followed by multiplegenerations of breeding according to such well-known methods. Newvarieties may be created by crossing with any second plant. In selectingsuch a second plant to cross for the purpose of developing novel lines,it may be desired to choose those plants which either themselves exhibitone or more selected desirable characteristics or which exhibit thedesired characteristic(s) when in hybrid combination. Once initialcrosses have been made, inbreeding and selection take place to producenew varieties. For development of a uniform line, often five or moregenerations of selfing and selection are involved.

Uniform lines of new varieties may also be developed by way ofdouble-haploids. This technique allows the creation of true breedinglines without the need for multiple generations of selfing andselection. In this manner true breeding lines can be produced in aslittle as one generation. Haploid embryos may be produced frommicrospores, pollen, anther cultures, or ovary cultures. The haploidembryos may then be doubled autonomously, or by chemical treatments(e.g. colchicine treatment). Alternatively, haploid embryos may be growninto haploid plants and treated to induce chromosome doubling. In eithercase, fertile homozygous plants are obtained. In accordance with theinvention, any of such techniques may be used in connection with a plantof the invention and progeny thereof to achieve a homozygous line.

Backcrossing can also be used to improve an inbred plant. Backcrossingtransfers a specific desirable trait from one inbred or non-inbredsource to an inbred that lacks that trait. This can be accomplished, forexample, by first crossing a superior inbred (A) (recurrent parent) to adonor inbred (non-recurrent parent), which carries the appropriate locusor loci for the trait in question. The progeny of this cross are thenmated back to the superior recurrent parent (A) followed by selection inthe resultant progeny for the desired trait to be transferred from thenon-recurrent parent. After five or more backcross generations withselection for the desired trait, the progeny have the characteristicbeing transferred, but are like the superior parent for most or almostall other loci. The last backcross generation would be selfed to givepure breeding progeny for the trait being transferred.

The plants of the present invention are particularly well suited for thedevelopment of new lines based on the elite nature of the geneticbackground of the plants. In selecting a second plant to cross withSVHH2680 and/or pepper lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 for thepurpose of developing novel pepper lines, it will typically be preferredto choose those plants which either themselves exhibit one or moreselected desirable characteristics or which exhibit the desiredcharacteristic(s) when in hybrid combination. Examples of desirabletraits may include, in specific embodiments, high seed yield, high seedgermination, seedling vigor, high fruit yield, disease tolerance orresistance, adaptability for soil and climate conditions, and delayedfruit ripening. Consumer-driven traits, such as a fruit shape, color,texture, and taste are other examples of traits that may be incorporatedinto new lines of pepper plants developed by this invention.

D. Further Embodiments of the Invention

In certain aspects of the invention, plants described herein areprovided modified to include at least a first desired heritable trait.Such plants may, in one embodiment, be developed by a plant breedingtechnique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to a genetic locus transferred into the plant viathe backcrossing technique. The term single locus converted plant asused herein refers to those pepper plants which are developed by a plantbreeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to the single locus transferred into the varietyvia the backcrossing technique. By essentially all of the morphologicaland physiological characteristics, it is meant that the characteristicsof a plant are recovered that are otherwise present when compared in thesame environment, other than an occasional variant trait that mightarise during backcrossing or direct introduction of a transgene.

Backcrossing methods can be used with the present invention to improveor introduce a characteristic into the present variety. The parentalpepper plant which contributes the locus for the desired characteristicis termed the nonrecurrent or donor parent. This terminology refers tothe fact that the nonrecurrent parent is used one time in the backcrossprotocol and therefore does not recur. The parental pepper plant towhich the locus or loci from the nonrecurrent parent are transferred isknown as the recurrent parent as it is used for several rounds in thebackcrossing protocol.

In a typical backcross protocol, the original variety of interest(recurrent parent) is crossed to a second variety (nonrecurrent parent)that carries the single locus of interest to be transferred. Theresulting progeny from this cross are then crossed again to therecurrent parent and the process is repeated until a pepper plant isobtained wherein essentially all of the morphological and physiologicalcharacteristics of the recurrent parent are recovered in the convertedplant, in addition to the single transferred locus from the nonrecurrentparent.

The selection of a suitable recurrent parent is an important step for asuccessful backcrossing procedure. The goal of a backcross protocol isto alter or substitute a single trait or characteristic in the originalvariety. To accomplish this, a single locus of the recurrent variety ismodified or substituted with the desired locus from the nonrecurrentparent, while retaining essentially all of the rest of the desiredgenetic, and therefore the desired physiological and morphologicalconstitution of the original variety. The choice of the particularnonrecurrent parent will depend on the purpose of the backcross; one ofthe major purposes is to add some commercially desirable trait to theplant. The exact backcrossing protocol will depend on the characteristicor trait being altered and the genetic distance between the recurrentand nonrecurrent parents. Although backcrossing methods are simplifiedwhen the characteristic being transferred is a dominant allele, arecessive allele, or an additive allele (between recessive anddominant), may also be transferred. In this instance it may be necessaryto introduce a test of the progeny to determine if the desiredcharacteristic has been successfully transferred.

In one embodiment, progeny pepper plants of a backcross in which a plantdescribed herein is the recurrent parent comprise (i) the desired traitfrom the non-recurrent parent and (ii) all of the physiological andmorphological characteristics of pepper the recurrent parent asdetermined at the 5% significance level when grown in the sameenvironmental conditions.

New varieties can also be developed from more than two parents. Thetechnique, known as modified backcrossing, uses different recurrentparents during the backcrossing. Modified backcrossing may be used toreplace the original recurrent parent with a variety having certain moredesirable characteristics or multiple parents may be used to obtaindifferent desirable characteristics from each.

With the development of molecular markers associated with particulartraits, it is possible to add additional traits into an established germline, such as represented here, with the end result being substantiallythe same base germplasm with the addition of a new trait or traits.Molecular breeding, as described in Moose and Mumm, 2008 (PlantPhysiol., 147: 969-977), for example, and elsewhere, provides amechanism for integrating single or multiple traits or QTL into an eliteline. This molecular breeding-facilitated movement of a trait or traitsinto an elite line may encompass incorporation of a particular genomicfragment associated with a particular trait of interest into the eliteline by the mechanism of identification of the integrated genomicfragment with the use of flanking or associated marker assays. In theembodiment represented here, one, two, three or four genomic loci, forexample, may be integrated into an elite line via this methodology. Whenthis elite line containing the additional loci is further crossed withanother parental elite line to produce hybrid offspring, it is possibleto then incorporate at least eight separate additional loci into thehybrid. These additional loci may confer, for example, such traits as adisease resistance or a fruit quality trait. In one embodiment, eachlocus may confer a separate trait. In another embodiment, loci may needto be homozygous and exist in each parent line to confer a trait in thehybrid. In yet another embodiment, multiple loci may be combined toconfer a single robust phenotype of a desired trait.

Many single locus traits have been identified that are not regularlyselected for in the development of a new inbred but that can be improvedby backcrossing techniques. Single locus traits may or may not betransgenic; examples of these traits include, but are not limited to,herbicide resistance, resistance to bacterial, fungal, or viral disease,insect resistance, modified fatty acid or carbohydrate metabolism, andaltered nutritional quality. These comprise genes generally inheritedthrough the nucleus.

Direct selection may be applied where the single locus acts as adominant trait. For this selection process, the progeny of the initialcross are assayed for viral resistance and/or the presence of thecorresponding gene prior to the backcrossing. Selection eliminates anyplants that do not have the desired gene and resistance trait, and onlythose plants that have the trait are used in the subsequent backcross.This process is then repeated for all additional backcross generations.

Selection of pepper plants for breeding is not necessarily dependent onthe phenotype of a plant and instead can be based on geneticinvestigations. For example, one can utilize a suitable genetic markerwhich is closely genetically linked to a trait of interest. One of thesemarkers can be used to identify the presence or absence of a trait inthe offspring of a particular cross, and can be used in selection ofprogeny for continued breeding. This technique is commonly referred toas marker assisted selection. Any other type of genetic marker or otherassay which is able to identify the relative presence or absence of atrait of interest in a plant can also be useful for breeding purposes.Procedures for marker assisted selection are well known in the art. Suchmethods will be of particular utility in the case of recessive traitsand variable phenotypes, or where conventional assays may be moreexpensive, time consuming or otherwise disadvantageous. Types of geneticmarkers which could be used in accordance with the invention include,but are not necessarily limited to, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

E. Plants Derived by Genetic Engineering

Many useful traits that can be introduced by backcrossing, as well asdirectly into a plant, are those which are introduced by moleculargenetic methods. Such methods include, but are not limited to, variousplant transformation techniques and methods for site-specificrecombination, the use of which are well-known in the art, and include,for example, the CRISPR-Cas system, zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs), andtranscription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), among others.

In one embodiment of the invention, genetic transformation may be usedto insert a selected transgene into a plant of the invention or may,alternatively, be used for the preparation of transgenes which can beintroduced by backcrossing. Methods for the transformation of plantsthat are well-known to those of skill in the art and applicable to manycrop species include, but are not limited to, electroporation,microprojectile bombardment, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, anddirect DNA uptake by protoplasts.

To effect transformation by electroporation, one may employ eitherfriable tissues, such as a suspension culture of cells or embryogeniccallus or alternatively one may transform immature embryos or otherorganized tissue directly. In this technique, one would partiallydegrade the cell walls of the chosen cells by exposing them topectin-degrading enzymes (pectolyases) or mechanically wound tissues ina controlled manner.

An efficient method for delivering transforming DNA segments to plantcells is microprojectile bombardment. In this method, particles arecoated with nucleic acids and delivered into cells by a propellingforce. Exemplary particles include those comprised of tungsten,platinum, and preferably, gold. For the bombardment, cells in suspensionare concentrated on filters or solid culture medium. Alternatively,immature embryos or other target cells may be arranged on solid culturemedium. The cells to be bombarded are positioned at an appropriatedistance below the macroprojectile stopping plate.

An illustrative embodiment of a method for delivering DNA into plantcells by acceleration is the Biolistics Particle Delivery System, whichcan be used to propel particles coated with DNA or cells through ascreen, such as a stainless steel or Nytex screen, onto a surfacecovered with target cells. The screen disperses the particles so thatthey are not delivered to the recipient cells in large aggregates.Microprojectile bombardment techniques are widely applicable, and may beused to transform virtually any plant species.

Agrobacterium-mediated transfer is another widely applicable system forintroducing gene loci into plant cells. An advantage of the technique isthat DNA can be introduced into whole plant tissues, thereby bypassingthe need for regeneration of an intact plant from a protoplast. ModernAgrobacterium transformation vectors are capable of replication in E.coli as well as Agrobacterium, allowing for convenient manipulations(Klee et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 3(7):637-642, 1985). Moreover, recenttechnological advances in vectors for Agrobacterium-mediated genetransfer have improved the arrangement of genes and restriction sites inthe vectors to facilitate the construction of vectors capable ofexpressing various polypeptide coding genes. The vectors described haveconvenient multi-linker regions flanked by a promoter and apolyadenylation site for direct expression of inserted polypeptidecoding genes. Additionally, Agrobacterium containing both armed anddisarmed Ti genes can be used for transformation.

In those plant strains where Agrobacterium-mediated transformation isefficient, it is the method of choice because of the facile and definednature of the gene locus transfer. The use of Agrobacterium-mediatedplant integrating vectors to introduce DNA into plant cells is wellknown in the art (Fraley et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 3:629-635, 1985; U.S.Pat. No. 5,563,055).

Transformation of plant protoplasts also can be achieved using methodsbased on calcium phosphate precipitation, polyethylene glycol treatment,electroporation, and combinations of these treatments (see, e.g.,Potrykus et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 199:183-188, 1985; Omirulleh et al.,Plant Mol. Biol., 21(3):415-428, 1993; Fromm et al., Nature,312:791-793, 1986; Uchimiya et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 204:204, 1986;Marcotte et al., Nature, 335:454, 1988). Transformation of plants andexpression of foreign genetic elements is exemplified in Choi et al.(Plant Cell Rep., 13:344-348, 1994) and Ellul et al. (Theor. Appl.Genet., 107:462-469, 2003).

A number of promoters have utility for plant gene expression for anygene of interest including but not limited to selectable markers,scoreable markers, genes for pest tolerance, disease resistance,nutritional enhancements and any other gene of agronomic interest.Examples of constitutive promoters useful for plant gene expressioninclude, but are not limited to, the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV)P-35S promoter, which confers constitutive, high-level expression inmost plant tissues (see, e.g., Odel et al., Nature, 313:810, 1985),including in monocots (see, e.g., Dekeyser et al., Plant Cell, 2:591,1990; Terada and Shimamoto, Mol. Gen. Genet., 220:389, 1990); a tandemlyduplicated version of the CaMV 35S promoter, the enhanced 35S promoter(P-e35S); the nopaline synthase promoter (An et al., Plant Physiol.,88:547, 1988); the octopine synthase promoter (Fromm et al., Plant Cell,1:977, 1989); and the figwort mosaic virus (P-FMV) promoter as describedin U.S. Pat. No. 5,378,619 and an enhanced version of the FMV promoter(P-eFMV) where the promoter sequence of P-FMV is duplicated in tandem;the cauliflower mosaic virus 19S promoter; a sugarcane bacilliform viruspromoter; a commelina yellow mottle virus promoter; and other plant DNAvirus promoters known to express in plant cells.

A variety of plant gene promoters that are regulated in response toenvironmental, hormonal, chemical, and/or developmental signals can alsobe used for expression of an operably linked gene in plant cells,including promoters regulated by (1) heat (Callis et al., PlantPhysiol., 88:965, 1988), (2) light (e.g., pea rbcS-3A promoter,Kuhlemeier et al., Plant Cell, 1:471, 1989; maize rbcS promoter,Schaffner and Sheen, Plant Cell, 3:997, 1991; or chlorophyll a/b-bindingprotein promoter, Simpson et al., EMBO J., 4:2723, 1985), (3) hormones,such as abscisic acid (Marcotte et al., Plant Cell, 1:969, 1989), (4)wounding (e.g., wunl, Siebertz et al., Plant Cell, 1:961, 1989); or (5)chemicals such as methyl jasmonate, salicylic acid, or Safener. It mayalso be advantageous to employ organ-specific promoters (e.g., Roshal etal., EMBO J., 6:1155, 1987; Schernthaner et al., EMBO J., 7:1249, 1988;Bustos et al., Plant Cell, 1:839, 1989).

Exemplary nucleic acids which may be introduced to plants of thisinvention include, for example, DNA sequences or genes from anotherspecies, or even genes or sequences which originate with or are presentin the same species, but are incorporated into recipient cells bygenetic engineering methods rather than classical reproduction orbreeding techniques. However, the term “exogenous” is also intended torefer to genes that are not normally present in the cell beingtransformed, or perhaps simply not present in the form, structure, etc.,as found in the transforming DNA segment or gene, or genes which arenormally present and that one desires to express in a manner thatdiffers from the natural expression pattern, e.g., to over-express.Thus, the term “exogenous” gene or DNA is intended to refer to any geneor DNA segment that is introduced into a recipient cell, regardless ofwhether a similar gene may already be present in such a cell. The typeof DNA included in the exogenous DNA can include DNA which is alreadypresent in the plant cell, DNA from another plant, DNA from a differentorganism, or a DNA generated externally, such as a DNA sequencecontaining an antisense message of a gene, or a DNA sequence encoding asynthetic or modified version of a gene.

Many hundreds if not thousands of different genes are known and couldpotentially be introduced into a pepper plant according to theinvention. Non-limiting examples of particular genes and correspondingphenotypes one may choose to introduce into a pepper plant include oneor more genes for insect tolerance, such as a Bacillus thuringiensis(B.t.) gene, pest tolerance such as genes for fungal disease control,herbicide tolerance such as genes conferring glyphosate tolerance, andgenes for quality improvements such as yield, nutritional enhancements,environmental or stress tolerances, or any desirable changes in plantphysiology, growth, development, morphology or plant product(s). Forexample, structural genes would include any gene that confers insecttolerance including but not limited to a Bacillus insect control proteingene as described in WO 99/31248, herein incorporated by reference inits entirety, U.S. Pat. No. 5,689,052, herein incorporated by referencein its entirety, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,500,365 and 5,880,275, hereinincorporated by reference in their entirety. In another embodiment, thestructural gene can confer tolerance to the herbicide glyphosate asconferred by genes including, but not limited to Agrobacterium strainCP4 glyphosate resistant EPSPS gene (aroA:CP4) as described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,633,435, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, orglyphosate oxidoreductase gene (GOX) as described in U.S. Pat. No.5,463,175, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Alternatively, the DNA coding sequences can affect these phenotypes byencoding a non-translatable RNA molecule that causes the targetedinhibition of expression of an endogenous gene, for example viaantisense- or cosuppression-mediated mechanisms (see, for example, Birdet al., Biotech. Gen. Engin. Rev., 9:207, 1991). The RNA could also be acatalytic RNA molecule (i.e., a ribozyme) engineered to cleave a desiredendogenous mRNA product (see for example, Gibson and Shillito, Mol.Biotech., 7:125, 1997). Thus, any gene which produces a protein or mRNAwhich expresses a phenotype or morphology change of interest is usefulfor the practice of the present invention.

F. Definitions

In the description and tables herein, a number of terms are used. Inorder to provide a clear and consistent understanding of thespecification and claims, the following definitions are provided:

Allele: Any of one or more alternative forms of a gene locus, all ofwhich alleles relate to one trait or characteristic. In a diploid cellor organism, the two alleles of a given gene occupy corresponding locion a pair of homologous chromosomes.

Backcrossing: A process in which a breeder repeatedly crosses hybridprogeny, for example a first generation hybrid (F₁), back to one of theparents of the hybrid progeny. Backcrossing can be used to introduce oneor more single locus conversions from one genetic background intoanother.

Crossing: The mating of two parent plants.

Cross-Pollination: Fertilization by the union of two gametes fromdifferent plants.

Diploid: A cell or organism having two sets of chromosomes.

Emasculate: The removal of plant male sex organs or the inactivation ofthe organs with a cytoplasmic or nuclear genetic factor or a chemicalagent conferring male sterility.

Enzymes: Molecules which can act as catalysts in biological reactions.

F₁ Hybrid: The first generation progeny of the cross of two nonisogenicplants.

Genotype: The genetic constitution of a cell or organism.

Haploid: A cell or organism having one set of the two sets ofchromosomes in a diploid.

Linkage: A phenomenon wherein alleles on the same chromosome tend tosegregate together more often than expected by chance if theirtransmission was independent.

Marker: A readily detectable phenotype, preferably inherited incodominant fashion (both alleles at a locus in a diploid heterozygoteare readily detectable), with no environmental variance component, i.e.,heritability of 1.

Phenotype: The detectable characteristics of a cell or organism, whichcharacteristics are the manifestation of gene expression.

Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL): Quantitative trait loci (QTL) refer togenetic loci that control to some degree numerically representabletraits that are usually continuously distributed.

Resistance: As used herein, the terms “resistance” and “tolerance” areused interchangeably to describe plants that show no symptoms to aspecified biotic pest, pathogen, abiotic influence or environmentalcondition. These terms are also used to describe plants showing somesymptoms but that are still able to produce marketable product with anacceptable yield. Some plants that are referred to as resistant ortolerant are only so in the sense that they may still produce a crop,even though the plants are stunted and the yield is reduced.

Regeneration: The development of a plant from tissue culture.

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Color Chart Value: The RHS Color Chartis a standardized reference which allows accurate identification of anycolor. A color's designation on the chart describes its hue, brightnessand saturation. A color is precisely named by the RHS Color Chart byidentifying the group name, sheet number and letter, e.g., Yellow-OrangeGroup 19A or Red Group 41B.

Self-Pollination: The transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigmaof the same plant.

Single Locus Converted (Conversion) Plant: Plants which are developed bya plant breeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially allof the morphological and physiological characteristics of a peppervariety are recovered in addition to the characteristics of the singlelocus transferred into the variety via the backcrossing technique and/orby genetic transformation.

Substantially Equivalent: A characteristic that, when compared, does notshow a statistically significant difference (e.g., p=0.05) from themean.

Tissue Culture: A composition comprising isolated cells of the same or adifferent type or a collection of such cells organized into parts of aplant.

Transgene: A genetic locus comprising a sequence which has beenintroduced into the genome of a pepper plant by transformation or sitespecific recombination.

G. Deposit Information

A deposit of pepper hybrid SVHH2680 and inbred parent lines HHAFD14-1338and HHA-FD-1209, disclosed above and recited in the claims, has beenmade with the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), 10801 UniversityBlvd., Manassas, Va. 20110-2209. The date of deposit for pepper hybridSVHH2680 and inbred parent lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 was Aug.4, 2017. The accession numbers for those deposited seeds of pepperhybrid SVHH2680 and inbred parent lines HHAFD14-1338 and HHA-FD-1209 areATCC Accession Number PTA-124392, ATCC Accession Number PTA-124393, andATCC Accession Number PTA-124394, respectively. Upon issuance of apatent, all restrictions upon the deposits will be removed, and thedeposits are intended to meet all of the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §1.801-1.809. The deposits will be maintained in the depository for aperiod of 30 years, or 5 years after the last request, or for theeffective life of the patent, whichever is longer, and will be replacedif necessary during that period.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail byway of illustration and example for purposes of clarity andunderstanding, it will be obvious that certain changes and modificationsmay be practiced within the scope of the invention, as limited only bythe scope of the appended claims.

All references cited herein are hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference.

What is claimed:
 1. A pepper plant comprising at least a first set ofthe chromosomes of pepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209,a sample of seed of said lines having been deposited under ATCCAccession Number PTA-124393 and ATCC Accession Number PTA-124394,respectively.
 2. A pepper seed that produces the plant of claim
 1. 3.The plant of claim 1, wherein the plant is a plant of said pepper lineHHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209.
 4. The plant of claim 1,wherein the plant is a plant of pepper hybrid SVHH2680, a sample of seedof said hybrid having been deposited under ATCC Accession NumberPTA-124392.
 5. The seed of claim 2, wherein the seed is a seed of saidpepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209.
 6. The seed ofclaim 2, wherein the seed is a seed of pepper hybrid SVHH2680, a sampleof seed of said hybrid having been deposited under ATCC Accession NumberPTA-124392.
 7. A plant part of the plant of claim 1, wherein the plantpart comprises a cell of said plant, wherein said cell comprises atleast said first set of the chromosomes of pepper line HHAFD14-1338 orpepper line HHA-FD-1209.
 8. A pepper plant having all the physiologicaland morphological characteristics of the plant of claim
 1. 9. A tissueculture of regenerable cells of the plant of claim 1, wherein at leastone cell of said tissue culture comprises at least said first set ofchromosomes of pepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209. 10.A method of vegetatively propagating the pepper plant of claim 1, themethod comprising the steps of: (a) collecting tissue capable of beingpropagated from the plant according to claim 1; and (b) propagating apepper plant from said tissue.
 11. A method of introducing a trait intoa pepper line, the method comprising: (a) utilizing as a recurrentparent a plant according to claim 1, by crossing said plant with a donorpepper plant that comprises a trait to produce F₁ progeny; (b) selectingan F₁ progeny that comprises the trait; (c) backcrossing the selected F₁progeny with a plant of the same pepper line used as the recurrentparent in step (a) to produce backcross progeny; (d) selecting abackcross progeny comprising the trait and the morphological andphysiological characteristics of the recurrent parent pepper line usedin step (a); and (e) repeating steps (c) and (d) three or more times toproduce a selected fourth or higher backcross progeny.
 12. A pepperplant produced by the method of claim
 11. 13. A method of producing apepper plant comprising an added trait, the method comprisingintroducing a transgene conferring the trait into a plant according toclaim
 1. 14. A pepper plant produced by the method of claim
 13. 15. Apepper plant comprising at least a first set of the chromosomes ofpepper line HHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209, a sample of seed ofsaid lines having been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-124393and ATCC Accession Number PTA-124394, respectively, further comprising atransgene.
 16. The plant of claim 15, wherein the transgene confers atrait selected from the group consisting of male sterility, herbicidetolerance, insect resistance, pest resistance, disease resistance,modified fatty acid metabolism, environmental stress tolerance, modifiedcarbohydrate metabolism, and modified protein metabolism.
 17. A pepperplant comprising at least a first set of the chromosomes of pepper lineHHAFD14-1338 or pepper line HHA-FD-1209, a sample of seed of said lineshaving been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-124393 and ATCCAccession Number PTA-124394, respectively, further comprising a singlelocus conversion.
 18. The plant of claim 17, wherein the single locusconversion confers a trait selected from the group consisting of malesterility, herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, pest resistance,disease resistance, modified fatty acid metabolism, environmental stresstolerance, modified carbohydrate metabolism, and modified proteinmetabolism.
 19. A method for producing a seed of a pepper plant derivedfrom at least one of pepper hybrid SVHH2680, pepper line HHAFD14-1338,or pepper line HHA-FD-1209, the method comprising the steps of: (a)crossing a pepper plant according to claim 1 with itself or a secondpepper plant; and (b) allowing seed of a hybrid SVHH2680, lineHHAFD14-1338, or line HHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant to form.
 20. Amethod of producing a seed of a hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, orline HHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant, the method comprising the stepsof: (a) producing a hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, or lineHHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant from a seed produced by crossing apepper plant according to claim 1 with itself or a second pepper plant;and (b) crossing the hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, lineHHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant with itself or a different pepper plantto obtain a seed of a further hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, orline HHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant.
 21. The method of claim 20, themethod further comprising repeating said producing and crossing steps of(a) and (b) using a seed from said step (b) for producing a plantaccording to step (a) for at least one generation to produce a seed ofan additional hybrid SVHH2680, line HHAFD14-1338, or lineHHA-FD-1209-derived pepper plant.
 22. A method of producing a pepperfruit, the method comprising: (a) obtaining the plant according to claim1, wherein the plant has been cultivated to maturity; and (b) collectinga pepper fruit from the plant.